how long does valium withdrawal last?

[swivelhed]

I've been using valium for at least ten years on a daily basis. Two months ago I reduced dosage from 10mg a day to 5, and three of weeks ago went down to 2.5mg. Two weeks ago, stopped taking it altogether.

Now, I've got a strange metallic taste in my mouth, fast heartbeat and the world seems to be kind of swimmy, if that makes any sense. A couple of nights ago I was having full on visual and auditory hallucinations.

It is my intention to walk away from this drug, but I'm not sure if I'm going about it the right way. I have no insurance and no Doctor. I understand this may take a while and am willing to suffer through, but am curious if anyone out there might know the real taper off formula? I am 50 years old and in good shape, 5'8, 160 lbs.

Thanks in advance
Swiv

[paulfazz]

I have been taking valium for almost 6 years at first I got them from the street dealers, I enjoyed the ruthlessness of taking valium and drinking alcohol it was all just one big aggressive mad party then I went to the doctor on a day I was feeling stressed and anxious (I suffer from panic and anxiety disorder) and asked for some valium the doctor said that he could only prescribe 2mg tablets I said ok fair enough and off i went with my prescription i then went to chemist got my tablets got home and to my amazement when i opened the bag it had 3 x 28 tablet box's of valium ( but they were all 10mg pills instead of 2mg( thats nearly 900ml) i thought 'score' did'nt even think about it i started taking them the doctor had to carry on prescribing me the same amount no checks were done no real help there just a repeat prescription of the same amount per week i had lots of crazy times on them parties etc etc which last about 2 years i then decided that i didnt want to take valium or drink any more i stopped cold turkey i would average my daily dose at the time at about anywhere between 40-80ml, about 4,5 days passed then 'BOOM' out of nowhere i had the most scarey insane panic attack i have ever experienced i did not know this was down to the valium as i felt fine for 4,5 days then i quickly realised it was withdrawl symptoms, i still didnt have any real clue as to how to take these things so i just cut back on my use i only took a certain amount through the week say no more than 20-30ml then on the weekend no more than 50ml then over the course of a year i mananged to stablilise on 20ml per day that was 18 months ago i am now taking 9.5ml soon to be 9ml, i have been reducing my dose at no more than 10% of what my daily dose is i got this advice from a professer called heather ashtons she has info on benzo.org, i soon realised after many visits to my GP that there is no real help from benzo addicts and that i was on my own unfortunatley , it has took me a long time to get to where i am now and will take me another 18 months to get off it completley all i will say is DO NOT come off this drug to quickly as the side effects can be fatal! Valium is a drug that should only be prescribed in extreme cases, it has massive potential for abuse even with your an average person and the withdrawl process is just not worth the hassle beleive me, to any one out there suffering from withdrawl who feels alone and stupid for even taking this drug in the first place you are not alone and stay strong you will make it, it just takes time alot of time!

[jack397]

I have came of vallies 7 weeks ago, and it's been a *****(no disrespect).
I have had panic attacks, nightmares, aches and pains etc. But it does get better. I was on 40mg a day for 2 and a half years, and when I decided to get off them I tappered myself of them slowly, that's what you should do. Honestly you should see a doctor you could have a seizure, I have had 2.

Now I just can't sleep very well, the panic attacks have gone, no more seizures.Still have the stupid metalic taste in my mouth, dizziness, and sweats now and then. But that's better than the first 14 to 28 days which in my opinion are the worst

GO SEEK A DOCTOR TRUST ME.......;)

[Pheature]

I read the whole lot, from everyone.

1. Everyone is complaining on how they are or have took A-lot of drugs at high dosage.
2. No one is actually really giving out advice on how to cut down or stopped totally  (maybe they just don't know it)
3. I know A-lot in this subject so if you want help please continue to read.

First of all i want to say i  love the quote about the grandfather explaining to his grandson about a battle of two wolves within him and every other person!
The only other part i would add on to that would of been ( and when you have feed your good wolf, remember child later in life your good wolf which has been fed and filled up and now it will be laid back and will at times come up against a vicious hungry bad wolf. my child i would rather come up against a hungry "nice" wolf than a hungry "bad" one. so be NICE and SHARE!?!!

Anyway to the people who have been on drugs for over 20+years, i don't mean to be rude or anyway heisty towards you but when you where perscribed these drugs the docters really did not have as good quality in medical science as we do in todays modern area!
This brings me to the conclusion of "gunnie-pig area"  If you check out post world war I and II drugs like the ones talked in this thread where not took in as much quantity as they are today! so what am i getting at?

Where has all your test results went to? quite simple to progress our medical science in these drugs.
And somehow we have came up with the conclusion that these drugs can be abused! GOD KNOWS HOW THIS HAPPEND!? as i do not.

to the people who take illegal ones the blue roche 10mg for example.
here is ingredients (if your lucky of just one tablet of 10mg roche)

3mg of diazepam
4mg of magnesium
1mg of blue ink (no it is not a chemical reaction of the benzodiazepen and magnesium that turns fake diazepam blue)
1mg of rat poisen
1mg of apaurine

they are cheap (easy purchased in 1000's for a reson!) so please for your health if your doing this please simply tell your docter what you are doing and explain to them you are going to continue to do so if they do not perscribe you the correct drug (the safer one) and this is what your docter is here for, is it not? if they refuse to help you they are not doing there job, and the last i looked the word JOB is what your a getting paid for and the last i looked the word DOCTER means a person who cares or looks after another person! so on there best interest would HAVE to be is to perscribe you diazepam to stop you from taking fake ones WHICH i might add is funding illegal orginizations, thus the government should be having a bigger impact on this subject than just letting it down to ONE person ( GENERAL PRACTICONER to deiced your heatlh ) but yet you still vote these unscrupulous people in to power i will not get into this as that is another story.
Back to the matter at hand!

If you want to get off the drugs you are on but its making your health worse
ITS SO EASY ITS A SECRET THEY DONT WANT TO TELL YOU BECAUSE IT KEEPS THE MONEY FLOWING FOR THEM.

I know this because i have 2 P.H.Ds in medical science.

So yes here is your answer. Strengthening up your immune system as abuse of any chemicals INCLUDING the ones your brain already produces changes the way your immune system works.  Yes change does not mean bad all the time so therefore your docter can't find what the problem is...

The information is already at your disposal on how to do this!

[kyb4725]

i took valium 60 mg. dailey for years. diagnosed with epilepsy, the drug was used for seizure control.  it never worked.i was forced to go cold turkey off from it by my employer's demand.  for 2 months i went thru hell.  there was not a spot on  my body that did not itch all of the time.later other drugs i was on dam near killed  me and i had become a canidate for surgery.  surgery was successful and proved i had a tumor which was removed.  now after 35 years off drugs i still have traces of all the drugs.  
they all have atomic half lives and never  totaly end .

[carol999p]

I have just read your post and want some advise.  I am trying to withdraw from ambien/zolpidem and dormonoct which I have been using for sleep for 12years  and have reached total tolerance levels i.e. the are no longer working and i am taking more and more to sleep.  I have contacted the non-benzodiazepine society who suggest I switch to valium and follow the Ashton Manual to taper down.  My question to you is how bad is is your insomnia during taper off i.e. do you sleep at all, how much etc.  The reason I ask this is because I tried to cold turkey off all my sleep meds in a rehab with the most disasterous withdrawals but the complete worst was the insomnia. I never slept for a single minute in 17days.  I ended up spending 3weeks in a psychiatric hospital. Please give me your advice.

[stimpi]

I have a CNS issue still UN-diagnosed. I am keeping this short for I am in the middle of this horrible times and I have no energy. I am posting here in attempt to find out if the withdraw is life threatening , I have all but lost hope for a "long future". I have been on 30 Mg to much higher dosaes for over 15 years,

I have one month into this with going to 2 Mg a day of lorapam, People around me know I am "beating" this medicine yet I feel as if this is simply to much. I am hoping in best case that the excessive amounts of diazapam have actually caused my complete equilibration and CNS break down, I now wonder if I should get back on the doses of valium or continue with this drop.

I post this to this community in hopes that what I am doing is safe and will it make any differnce in the long run.. I would add that I am writing this in the middle of the with draw.